Tell Gordhan openly of the charge against him without harassing him
16 May 2016
Congress of the People is disgusted with the ruling party. Instead of following the Constitutional injunction and providing South Africa with a “government by the people under the Constitution” it has taken power to itself and is continuously abusing that power. Its very legitimacy is now in question. If it continues to trump the rule of law and hijack state institutions to undermine the Constitution to achieve political ends, South Africa will edge ever closer to being a banana republic. Anyone with any political memory will recognise the steep descent from the heady days of 1994 when the president of the most powerful country in the world and someone as famous as Oprah Winfrey, among other stellar personalities, rushed to the side of Nelson Mandela and admiringly embraced South Africa. Those days are no more.
All of the dividends of the early years have been frittered away through policies and politics that inspire no one and which divide people.
If Pravin Gordhan has to answer a case let him do so in a dignified manner within the strict confines of the law. The same principle should apply to Mr Zuma himself. However, continuously to dangle the sword of Damocles over Gordhan's head, through continuous media leaks, reveals only one purpose: intimidation. By continuously harassing Gordhan, Mr Zuma must be hoping to infuriate him to the point that he resigns. The interrupted project of state capture will then proceed without hindrance and impediment. That is what this harassment is all about.
The ruling party must indicate what it is that Mr Gordhan has done that warrants his prosecution. If he transgressed any law, let him be openly charged with the offence so that he can openly defend himself. Threatening to charge him repeatedly, without swiftly and openly charging him, is to misuse the law and that reeks of a conspiracy against him. It is clear to us that there is a conspiracy against the Minister of Finance because of his no nonsense approach to managing the national treasury and in particular his unwillingness to spend what he does not have.